Thursday, October 9, 2014

An 18-year-old was killed by an off duty police man not far from where unarmed Michael Brown was shot dead by police two months ago, leading to mass protests and violence. This time, the shooting happened in south St. Louis not far from the Missouri Botanical Garden, and the victim was also black.

However, he was armed and had tried to shoot the policeman first. Still, his death has led to hours of protests overnight into this morning as an angry crowd gathered quickly when news spread across social media. The hashtag #shaeshooting is still trending.

While the number of protesters has continued to swell, and emotions are running high, St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson has said, "no businesses were looted and no windows were smashed."

Those monitoring the latest protests said the police have been very restrained in the face of protesters who sometimes shout profanities right to their faces and damage police cars.

According to CNN,

The officer, a six-year veteran of the force, was working a second job for a security company, one that was approved by his department. He was wearing his police uniform.

While on patrol, the officer saw three black males run away as he approached. He gave chase because one of them was holding up his pants in a way that made the officer believe the teen may be carrying a gun, Dotson said.

The officer and one of the three tussled. The teen ran off, then turned around and fired at least three shots at the officer, Dotson said.

The officer returned fire, killing the teen.

Police recovered a 9 mm handgun. And Dotson said the teen was "no stranger to law enforcement." He didn't offer details, citing privacy concerns.